Renewal... When do you find out?

[GalRN]

Hi,

I am at a facility in AZ, and have 4 weeks left out of 13wk contract. How long do they wait before asking you to renew? That of course, is assuming they want to renew you. The facility where I work is losing nurses b/c of a new unit opening at a nearby hospital. I told the NM 2 weeks ago that I'd love to stay and she said that with any traveler she needs to evaluate the staffing needs and then go through management. Duh.

The thing is that I need this job, love the facility, and can lease directly from the owners of the place I'm living (which is luxurious, and would be vacant otherwise). I also need to keep working- can't afford to go home for more than 2 weeks. Last time I went home w/o something lined up it took me 2 months to find something else.

I think they are considering renewal, I've had supervisors, peers, and techs coming up and telling me that they think I'm doing a really good job and are glad to have me there, and saying that pt feedback is very good. That's not something that happens often, and almost never with all the staff at once. I can only assume that the thoughts were there b/c they have been asked by management how they feel I'm doing, whether the dynamics are good, and generally if they want to keep working with me.

Pretty sure the answer is yes, but I really need to know as soon as is reasonable.

So what is a reasonable time frame? At what point should I assume they aren't renewing and start sending my portfolio around?

[bagladyrn, RN]

I generally speak to the manager or whoever is in charge of contracts about 6 weeks before the end of a contract. At that time I let them know that I am actively looking for my next contract and that while I would certainly prefer to continue at their facility (If this is so) I will have to accept any firm offer that comes my way by "X" date in order to insure that I have continued income.

If they have an intention of renewing my contract this will usually get them to get on with it.